


A Curse of Firsts

by cassiopeiasara



Category: Agent Carter (TV)
Genre: Cartinelli Week, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-11
Updated: 2015-08-11
Packaged: 2018-04-14 05:52:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4553181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cassiopeiasara/pseuds/cassiopeiasara
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five times Angie experiences a curse and the one time Peggy breaks it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Curse of Firsts

**Author's Note:**

> Shoutout to sarah_dude for being my beta!
> 
> Disclaimer: These ladies belong to Marvel, I seek no profit and copyright infringement is not intended.

Angie learns about ‘The Martinelli Curses’ at age five. Her Ma sits her down and explains that Aunt Gloria can’t travel anywhere without getting deathly ill, Uncle Tito who can’t stop marrying women who leave him for the milkman, and that no matter how many times she tries, her older sister will never be able to make Nonna’s tiramisu. Some curses are small, some big,  and Angie lived in fear of the day she learned hers.

 

I.

The first girl Angie falls in love with is Maria from Sunday school. With her chestnut curls and her bright smile, Maria is the sweetest person Angie has ever met. Eleven year old Angie can think of nothing better than spending Sunday afternoon in Maria's room, hiding from her brothers, talking about their favorite books, gossiping about the Amato widow and dreaming of one day renting a room together somewhere fancy with more money than they could ever dream of spending. Angie falls in love with Maria's laugh and the gorgeous sound of her singing as they create harmonies from their favorite songs.

The first time a girl breaks her heart is the summer she turns 13 and Maria decides Tommy from the building next to hers is more interesting than Angie Martinelli will ever be.

Angie vows she will never fall in love again.

 

II.

Angie breaks that vow at eighteen when she meets Beth, a jazz singer by night and a seamstress in a shop close to Angie’s first apartment by day. Beth lives a few blocks over, in a building with other single black women of their age. When Angie hears her humming in the shop while she works, her first thought is that Maria was nothing compared to the beauty of Beth and she worries about what that thought means.

When Beth starts to sing softly, Angie just stands in awe and doesn’t hear the owner of the shop ask what she needs. Beth looks up and gives her a hesitant smile and quirks her eyebrow expectantly. It breaks Angie from her daze and she finally answers that she’s here for some thread.

Angie sees Beth later waiting for a bus and approaches shyly. “I heard you singin’.”

Beth nods. “That sure sounds like me. You sing too?”

Angie bows her head and nods. “I try too. I’m gonna be on Broadway someday.” She lifts her head proudly when she mentions the latter.

“You’ll definitely get there before me sugah. I work tomorrow round the same time. How bout you come by when the shop closes and we talk some more?”

Angie’s face brightens instantly and Beth offers her a small smile in return. She teaches Angie about jazz and the blues and how to channel her pain and heartache into her singing. She helps her calm the nerves that always plague her, turn her excitement into energy and focus it, making her voice into something beautiful.

It’s with Beth that Angie first says ‘I love you’  and is crushed by the response she receives.

Beth smiles sadly. “Ain’t no use in lovin me honey, I’ll only be trouble. Not a whole lot of places we could hide and be together.”

Beth leaves shortly after for Harlem and warns Angie not to come searching for her but to keep on singing.

 

III.

Angie’s first audition is a disaster. It’s not that she expects it wouldn’t be but she hoped that maybe, just maybe someone would see that she’s got potential.

Another girl pats her on the back and says, “Can’t always get it on the first try honey.”

It’s then that Angie thinks her curse might be firsts.

 

IV.

During her first shift at the L&L, Angie is sure she’ll be fired by the end of the day with the amount of orders she has to take back and the unimpressed faces of her fellow wait staff. The fear of being fired quickly evolves into a desire to quit. At the end of the day, it’s not the men that oogle her or seem to think that a smack on the rear is an effective way to communicate that makes her want to just give up.

It’s the heat of so much movement, the ache in her face from constantly smiling, and the pain in her legs that damn near kills her. She knows though, it isn’t forever and her curse only affects her if she doesn’t get through the first. When she starts the second day, she thinks this curse thing is possibly all in her head. At the thought, she drops three plates and the manager yells at her. _Yeah no such luck_.

 

V.

The first time Angie moves in with a girl she’s seeing, she’s elated at the possibilities that lay before them. They buy a set of matching teacups, sew together gorgeous violet curtains and Angie brings home cake while Carol tells stories of all they’ll do when she finishes secretary school. She knows most things are rare like moving up in a company and possibly running a famous office but she kisses Angie goodnight every night and promises they’ll never part.

Six months later, Angie comes home to a note explaining Carol can’t do this anymore and overhears a girl down the hall a couple weeks later relate that she heard Carol got married and moved to Armonk.

 

VI.

Angie is scared the first time she meets Peggy Carter because she knows that while she’s been through lots of firsts, she’s never fallen almost completely at the sight of someone. With her red lipstick, those legs and that intoxicating voice, Angie knows immediately that she’s done for and she tries to resist but something about Peggy calls to her. Perhaps it’s the sadness in her eyes and the small light in those same eyes when Peggy laughs for the first time. It doesn’t take long for Angie to give up the resistance and instead pursue the Englishwoman’s friendship with the same fierce determination that keeps her going to audition after audition though she never seems to be getting anywhere.

She lands her first role shortly after she moves in with Peggy, and runs through the mansion proclaiming the good news. Peggy rushes out from the study and gathers Angie in her arms for the first time since Angie tried to help her run from the feds. She insists on taking Angie out to celebrate.

“I knew you could do it,” Peggy says as she leans back from their hug.

Angie shrugs. “Well it’s not that big but it’s a foot in the door.”

Peggy smiles and gives Angie’s arms a gentle squeeze. There’s something lingering in the way she looks at Angie, that makes her heart ache and remember Maria, Beth, and Carol. It makes her hope that maybe, just maybe her feelings are reciprocated when it comes to her incredible roommate. Peggy leans forward a little and sighs. “There’s something I need to tell you but I don’t want to frighten you.”

Angie eyebrows shoot up and she wonders if this is her curse. Her first real role and something terrible is about to happen. She tries to brush it off as she smiles and says, “I’m tough English, I can handle it.”

Peggy lets out a nervous laugh and nods. “That’s very true.” She slides her bottom lip through her teeth and considers a moment before releasing her lip, smudging her lipstick a little and looking like the Peggy who was too afraid to confide in Angie only a few months ago.  “I think I’ve fallen in love with someone.”

Angie’s heart sinks and she bows her head as she moves out of their embrace. “I hope you’ll be happy together, but hey, could you give me some notice before I gotta move out? It’ll take a while to find a place.” She turns to make her way to her bedroom, suddenly feeling like celebrating is the last thing she wants to do.

“Wait,” Peggy says as she places her hand on Angie’s shoulder to stop her and moves to stand in front of her again. She brings her hand to Angie’s cheek and says softly, “It’s you, you fool.”

Angie quirks an eyebrow. “You know Pegs, I don’t know what they do in England but here you don’t really tell someone you love them then-” She’s cut off by Peggy’s lips pressing against hers and _Jesus, Mary and Joseph_ it feels like absolute heaven. She moves her hands to Peggy’s waist and tilts her head to get a better angle.

When they finally part a few minutes later, Angie states, “You still didn’t have to insult me.”

“Yes, well, I’ll have no trouble making it up to you.”

It’s the first time Angie is surprised by something completely extraordinary and she wonders if her curse is broken.

 

 


End file.
